This invention relates generally to a flat panel display device having a plurality of electron guns for providing electron beams to electron beam guides and particularly to modulator structures for such a display device.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,128,784 to C. H. Anderson entitled "Beam Guide With Beam Injection Means," describes a beam guide for use in a flat panel cathodoluminiescent display device. The display device is composed of an evacuated envelope containing a plurality of internal support walls which divide the envelope into a plurality of parallel channels. Each channel contains a beam guide extending along one wall of the envelope. An electron gun structure emits electrons which are launched into the beam guides as electron beams. The beam guides include a pair of spaced parallel meshes extending along and spaced from the backwall of the envelope. The meshes contain a plurality of aligned apertures with the apertures being arranged in columns extending longitudinally along the paths of the beams. Each longitudinal column of apertures constitutes a separate beam guide. The apertures also are arranged in rows transversely of the guides. One line of the visual display is generated by ejecting the electron beams out of the guide through the apertures in a single row.
Copending Application Ser. No. 87,451 filed Oct. 22, 1979 by W. W. Siekanowicz, et al. entitled "Modulator With Variable Launch Conditions For Multi-Electron Gun Display Devices," now U.S. Pat. No. 4,263,529 a flat panel display including multiple beam channels each of which encloses guide meshes extending along the length of the channels. Each of the channels includes modulation electrodes and cathode means which provide modulated electron beams to the guide meshes. The guide meshes extend between the modulation electrodes, and the electron beams are propagated along the channels in the space between the meshes. A plurality of pairs of launch electrodes are arranged to span the beam guide meshes. The conditions under which electrons are launched into the space between the guide meshes can be selected by the application of various biasing potentials to the pairs of launch electrodes. Accordingly, conditions under which electrons are launched into the propagation space can be selected substantially independently of the conditions required for operation of the cathode and modulation electrodes.